Set Free!

In 1876, J. Willis Westlake, a literature professor in Pennsylvania, penned a manual titled How to Write Letters. The professor gives detailed instructions and samples. But he finishes by emphasizing just how important letters are for cultural and historical documentation.

Scroll through your social media feed, and you’ll be bombarded by different voices and opinions. Some of those messages are downright dangerous. And while the sheer volume of messages is far greater now than during the time of the early church, the consequence of listening and adhering to lies remains the same.

When my students at Moody Bible Institute give persuasive presentations, I listen for their sources. I teach my students to assess the credibility of their source material and to clearly identify which content belongs to them and what belongs to others.

Chuck Colson had one of the most dramatic public testimonies of the 1970s. Serving as Special Counsel to President Nixon, he became known as Nixon’s “hatchet man” and one of the most powerful people in the White House. But after Watergate, he became the first member of Nixon’s cabinet to serve prison time. In 1973, Colson became a Christ-follower.

The tradition of the courtroom witness oath was brought to America by the earliest English settlers, but the practice of requiring a witness to swear to honesty likely dates to Roman times. Today’s section of Galatians reads almost like a courtroom testimony. Paul is defending himself against those who have tried to discredit him and have accused him of preaching a false, man- made gospel.

Over the centuries, the gospel message has been distorted in many ways, from an over-emphasis on rules or performance to an excessive pursuit of emotion to supernatural wonders or prosperity. Still today, Christians must be vigilant about discerning and protecting the truth.

Competition can be healthy and enjoyable. It spurs us to do our best and fills us with admiration for those who do well. But when it comes to ministry, collaboration is generally a stronger model. When believers work together in unity, they bring their gifts and resources to the table and share them for the good of the group to reach a common goal.

If you’ve been a member of a congregation on the verge of a split, you know how confusing and painful it can be. Unfortunately, this threat to Christian unity is as old as the church itself. The transition into today’s passage feels abrupt. Paul just finished describing the harmony between himself and the Jerusalem apostles (vv. 1–10).

I’ve heard professors explain to student preachers that there are some biblical principles over which you can “pat the pulpit.” These “patable” points are helpful, even important, but may be less central to the faith. But there are other truths—foundational truths, essential truths—that should compel you to “pound the pulpit.”

A recent study by Harvard Law School reported that we are experiencing a cultural “epidemic of conflict avoidance.” They cite now-common behaviors like “ghosting” and “quiet quitting” as evidence of our unwillingness or even inability to have hard conversations.

What mentors have modeled faith for you? Did teachers, pastors, colleagues, family members, or friends provide you with examples of how to trust God and live out that belief? In Galatians 3:6–9, Paul reminds his readers of one of the greatest examples of faith: Abraham. The Jewish people in Paul’s time honored Abraham as an exemplary follower of God. Throughout Scripture, Abraham’s obedient acts are extolled.

When I’m in “project mode,” I can become so focused on getting things done that I lose my interpersonal awareness. I know I’m not alone. Our hearts and minds easily fixate on concrete, urgent tasks, sometimes to the detriment of our relationships.

Recently, I came across a box of family documents that had been passed on to me by my parents—property deeds from the 19th century, a tax receipt from 1901, and even a copy of my great-great-grandfather’s will. All of them were legal documents, handwritten on now-yellowed paper. They were binding in their time. Yet, they are of no value to me now— merely nostalgia.

I’ve been teaching long enough that I can often predict how a semester will go. I know which assignments students will breeze through, and which will give them trouble. And I can anticipate what questions they will ask in response to certain content.

In ancient Greece and Rome, wealthy households often included a pedagogue, a non-family member, commonly a slave, who cared for the family’s children from around age 6 until late adolescence. Pedagogues provided basic care, protection, and socialization training. Some pedagogues acted in kindness and compassion. But at the time of Paul’s writing of Galatians, they had a reputation of being harsh disciplinarians, often resorting to physical force toward their charges.

Our kids are now both teenagers! And with the addition of new variables like driver’s education and the ability to stay home alone, we are once again adjusting expectations and rules. Family “policies” that made sense just a couple of years ago no longer apply. As our children mature, so does our work of parenting them.

Ancient Roman law included the rule of patria potestas or “the power of the father.” Under patria potestas, the male head of the family held absolute power over his wife, children, slaves, and even his descendants in the male line. He controlled their persons and their property. Patria potestas ended only with the death of the father or by his willing act of emancipation.

My adopted daughter Amelia and I are currently watching season 4 of the TV series When Calls the Heart. In a recent episode, the café owner/mayor Abigail finalizes her adoption of young Cody, the boy she has been fostering. Soon after Cody receives the adoption certificate from Abigail, he leaves to play outside with his friends. As he crosses the street, he calls her “mom” for the very first time. Hearing Cody express that important change in relationship and identity brings Abigail (and me) to tears.

Sin is a relentless opponent. Satan and his forces do not sit idly by as Christians gain victory over their vices. Though the power of evil is curbed, it is still painfully effective. And even as we follow Christ, we are still in a spiritual war.

Conflict is inevitable in any close relationship, but when we navigate conflict well, we can emerge with even greater understanding and intimacy. One key to addressing conflict is to remain relationally attuned, to continue to see the other person as a person and an ally, even though you think differently about an issue.

Have you ever heard a speaker whose words were so convincing they inspired you to act? Aristotle taught that there are three parts of a strong persuasive argument: Logos (argument), Ethos (credibility), and Pathos (passion). Pathos refers to the speaker’s ability to evoke emotions in the hearer, knowing that our emotions affect the judgments we make.

Have you ever signed a contract without reading the fine print? Have you ever committed to something without understanding the full extent of the expectations or implications?

Sibling rivalry is common. Brothers and sisters bicker over both silly and significant things. Most siblings outgrow their differences, but some carry their conflict into adulthood. Because of the intimacy of the brother-sister relationship, sibling rivalry can be painful.

Freedom is difficult to describe. Poets use images to communicate its essence. Freedom is a butterfly flitting among the flowers in full bloom. It is a wild mountain river roaring over the rocks. It is a bird uncaged. Freedom feels like flying.

A questionable incident occurred during the women’s 5000-meter race at the Paris Olympics. Kenyan runner Faith Kipyegon was accused of shoving Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay during an attempt to pass. In a stunning finish, Kipyegon took second in the race, behind her teammate Beatrice Chebet. At first, Olympic officials disqualified Kipyegon because of the collision. But after further review, Kipyegon received her silver medal.

In 1866, Charles Spurgeon preached from Galatians 5 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London. Spurgeon said: “The very essence of Christianity is trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. But mark, we are told that this is faith of a certain kind; it is ‘faith which works by love’— not a faith that merely talks, much less a faith that goes to sleep, or a faith that bolsters men up in presumption, and makes them live in sin; but a faith which works by love, a practical faith, a faith which has arms and hands; not a crippled faith, but a living thing, which cannot help working; not a frozen river that is like stone in its bed, but rolling on, increasing, and swelling until it comes to the sea. It is a living thing, a working thing.

On a recent vacation, our family went for a walk in the Rocky Mountains outside of Vail, Colorado. We drove for miles up a bumpy dirt road to the Piney River Ranch. We enjoyed lunch then set off on a hike through the river valley along the base of the Gore Range, following the well-worn path of many hikers who had gone before. We walked where they had walked.

The fruit of the Spirit is probably the most well-known passage in Paul’s letter to the Galatians. You may have memorized these verses as a child. My husband recently serenaded me with a catchy ditty from his childhood: “The fruit of the Spirit is not a coconut.”

The Baptist Church Manual by J. Newton Brown (1853) was used by churches across America for many decades. It contains this beautiful paragraph of covenantal commitment: “We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to take offense, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour, to secure it without delay.” Perhaps Brown had Galatians 6 in mind when he penned this charge.

In 2017, retired agronomist Marc Dennis was sitting in his garage in Nebraska when he had an idea for a new kind of fertilizer. He used a kitchen blender to combine liquid magnesium with solid nitrogen. For three years he refused to give up, perfecting the ratio. The resulting formula would revolutionize the farming world.

In his 1876 volume How to Write Letters, J. Willis Westlake provides several ways to end a letter appropriately. “Yours respectfully,” “Your loving daughter,” and “We remain, dear sir, your obedient servants” highlight the relationship between the writer and the recipient and the author’s reverential posture.